What is the meaning of the word affix

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In linguistics, an affix is a morpheme that is attached to a word stem to form a new word or word form. Affixes may be derivational, like English -ness and pre-, or inflectional, like English plural -s and past tense -ed. They are bound morphemes by definition; prefixes and suffixes may be separable affixes. Affixation is the linguistic process that speakers use to form different words by adding morphemes at the beginning (prefixation), the middle (infixation) or the end (suffixation) of words.

Positional categories of affixes[edit]

Prefix and suffix may be subsumed under the term adfix, in contrast to infix.^[4]

When marking text for interlinear glossing, as in the third column in the chart above, simple affixes such as prefixes and suffixes are separated from the stem with hyphens. Affixes which disrupt the stem, or which themselves are discontinuous, are often marked off with angle brackets. Reduplication is often shown with a tilde. Affixes which cannot be segmented are marked with a back slash.

Lexical affixes[edit]

Lexical affixes (or semantic affixes) are bound elements that appear as affixes, but function as incorporated nouns within verbs and as elements of nouns. In other words, they are similar to word roots/stems in function but similar to affixes in form. Although similar to incorporated nouns, lexical affixes differ in that they never occur as freestanding nouns, i.e. they always appear as affixes.

Lexical affixes are relatively rare. The Wakashan, Salishan, and Chimakuan languages all have lexical suffixes — the presence of these is an areal feature of the Pacific Northwest of North America.

The lexical suffixes of these languages often show little to no resemblance to free nouns with similar meanings. Compare the lexical suffixes and free nouns of Northern Straits Saanich written in the Saanich orthography and in Americanist notation:

Lexical suffixes, when compared with free nouns, often have a more generic or general meaning. For instance, one of these languages may have a lexical suffix that means water in a general sense, but it may not have any noun equivalent referring to water in general and instead have several nouns with a more specific meaning (such «saltwater», «whitewater», etc.). In other cases, the lexical suffixes have become grammaticalized to various degrees.

Some linguists have claimed that these lexical suffixes provide only adverbial or adjectival notions to verbs. Other linguists disagree arguing that they may additionally be syntactic arguments just as free nouns are and, thus, equating lexical suffixes with incorporated nouns. Gerdts (2003) gives examples of lexical suffixes in the Halkomelem language (the word order here is verb–subject–object):

		VERB	SUBJ	OBJ
(1)	niʔ	šak’ʷ-ət-əs	łə słeniʔ	łə qeq
	«the woman washed the baby»
		VERB+LEX.SUFF	SUBJ
(2)	niʔ	šk’ʷ-əyəł	łə słeniʔ
	«the woman baby-washed»

In sentence (1), the verb «wash» is šak’ʷətəs where šak’ʷ- is the root and -ət and -əs are inflectional suffixes. The subject «the woman» is łə słeniʔ and the object «the baby» is łə qeq. In this sentence, «the baby» is a free noun. (The niʔ here is an auxiliary, which can be ignored for explanatory purposes.)

In sentence (2), «baby» does not appear as a free noun. Instead it appears as the lexical suffix -əyəł which is affixed to the verb root šk’ʷ- (which has changed slightly in pronunciation, but this can also be ignored here). Note how the lexical suffix is neither «the baby» (definite) nor «a baby» (indefinite); such referential changes are routine with incorporated nouns.

Orthographic affixes[edit]

In orthography, the terms for affixes may be used for the smaller elements of conjunct characters. For example, Maya glyphs are generally compounds of a main sign and smaller affixes joined at its margins. These are called prefixes, superfixes, postfixes, and subfixes according to their position to the left, on top, to the right, or at the bottom of the main glyph. A small glyph placed inside another is called an infix.^[5] Similar terminology is found with the conjunct consonants of the Indic alphabets. For example, the Tibetan alphabet utilizes prefix, suffix, superfix, and subfix consonant letters.^[6]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

• Gerdts, Donna B. (2003). «The morphosyntax of Halkomelem lexical suffixes». International Journal of American Linguistics. 69 (4): 345–356. doi:10.1086/382736. S2CID 143721330.
• Montler, Timothy. (1986). An outline of the morphology and phonology of Saanich, North Straits Salish. Occasional Papers in Linguistics (No. 4). Missoula, MT: University of Montana Linguistics Laboratory.
• Montler, Timothy. (1991). Saanich, North Straits Salish classified word list. Canadian Ethnology service paper (No. 119); Mercury series. Hull, Quebec: Canadian Museum of Civilization. ISBN 0-660-12908-6

External links[edit]

• Media related to Affixes at Wikimedia Commons
• Comprehensive and searchable affix dictionary reference

• 1
  affix
  
  

  affix

  1) прибавле́ние, прида́ток

  1) прикрепля́ть (to, on, upon)

  2) присоединя́ть

  Англо-русский словарь Мюллера > affix

• 2
  affix
  
  

  Персональный Сократ > affix

• 3
  affix
  
  

  [̘. ̈n.ˈæfɪks]

  affix грам. аффикс affix поставить (подпись); приложить (печать); to affix a stamp приклеить марку; to affix one’s signature поставить подпись affix прибавление, придаток affix прибавлять affix прикреплять (to, on, upon) affix присоединять affix скреплять печатью affix ставить подпись affix поставить (подпись); приложить (печать); to affix a stamp приклеить марку; to affix one’s signature поставить подпись affix поставить (подпись); приложить (печать); to affix a stamp приклеить марку; to affix one’s signature поставить подпись

  English-Russian short dictionary > affix

• 4
  affix
  
  

  ̘. ̈n.ˈæfɪks
  1. сущ.
  1) а) грам. аффикс Syn: suffix б) в кинологии обозначает специальную приставку, ставящуюся в паспорте до или после имени собаки, чтобы определить год рождения и породу
  2) редк. добавление, дополнение, прибавление, придаток Syn: appendage, addition
  2. гл.
  1) прикреплять (to, on, upon) to affix a stamp to the envelope ≈ приклеить марку к конверту Obtain postage stamps, and affix them carefully to the letters. ≈ Приобретите почтовые марки и аккуратно наклейте их на конверты. Syn: attach
  1)
  2) добавлять, прибавлять, присоединять (to, on, upon) Syn: add
  3) поставить (подпись) ;
  приложить (печать) to affix one’s signature to the contract ≈ поставить подпись на договоре

  affix грам. аффикс ~ поставить (подпись) ;
  приложить (печать) ;
  to affix a stamp приклеить марку;
  to affix one’s signature поставить подпись ~ прибавление, придаток ~ прибавлять ~ прикреплять (to, on, upon) ~ присоединять ~ скреплять печатью ~ ставить подпись

  ~ поставить (подпись) ;
  приложить (печать) ;
  to affix a stamp приклеить марку;
  to affix one’s signature поставить подпись

  ~ поставить (подпись) ;
  приложить (печать) ;
  to affix a stamp приклеить марку;
  to affix one’s signature поставить подпись

  Большой англо-русский и русско-английский словарь > affix

• 5
  affix
  
  

  ставить
  имя существительное:

  глагол:

  Англо-русский синонимический словарь > affix

• 6
  affix
  
  

  1. [ʹæfıks]

  грам.

  1. аффикс

  2.

  приложение, дополнение

  2. [əʹfıks]

  1. (to, on, upon)

  1) прикреплять

  to affix a placard on /upon/ a wall — прикрепить /приклеить/ плакат на стену

  2) приписывать ()

  to affix blame to smb. — приписывать вину кому-л.; сваливать вину на кого-л.

  2. (to, on, upon) прибавлять; присоединять

  to affix a letter [a syllable] to a word — добавить букву [слог] к слову

  to affix a postscript — сделать приписку, добавить постскриптум

  3. поставить (); приложить ()

  to affix one’s signature [one’s name] to a contract — поставить подпись [своё имя] под контрактом

  НБАРС > affix

• 7
  affix
  
  

  1. [‘æfɪks]

  сущ.

  Syn:

  2)

  редк.

  добавление, дополнение

  His affix to the speech was quite impressive. — Его дополнение к выступлению было впечатляющим.

  Syn:

  3) аффикс

  Affixes consist of names attached to the names of dogs, either in front of the dogs’ names (prefix) or behind (suffix) in order to identify the dogs with a particular breeder or kennel. (C. L. B. Hubbard) — Аффиксы — это слова, стоящие либо перед кличкой собаки (префикс), либо после нее (суффикс), с тем, чтобы отождествлять потомство одного определенного заводчика или питомника.

  2. [ə’fɪks]

  гл.

  Obtain postage stamps, and affix them carefully to the letters. — Приобретите почтовые марки и аккуратно наклейте их на конверты.

  Syn:

  2) добавлять, прибавлять, присоединять

  Syn:

  Англо-русский современный словарь > affix

• 8
  affix
  
  

  1. n грам. аффикс

  2. n грам. редк. приложение, дополнение

  3. v прикреплять

  4. v приписывать

  5. v прибавлять; присоединять

  6. v поставить; приложить

  Синонимический ряд:

  1. add-on (noun) addition; add-on; appendage; appendix; prefix; suffix; supplement; tab; tag; tailpiece

  3. attach (verb) attach; bind; hook; join; rivet; staple; stick; stick on; tack

  5. place (verb) assign; blame; fasten; fix; pin on; place; saddle

  Антонимический ряд:

  English-Russian base dictionary > affix

• 9
  affix
  
  

  1) прибавление, придаток

  1) прикреплять (to, on, upon)

  2) присоединять

  3) поставить (подпись); приложить (печать); to affix a stamp приклеить марку; to affix one’s signature поставить подпись

  Syn:

  add

  * * *

  2 (v) прикрепить; прикреплять

  * * *

  * * *

  [af·fix || ə’fɪks]
  аффикс, прибавление, придаток
  прикреплять, присоединять, поставить, поставить подпись, приложить, приложить печать

  * * *

  аффикс

  прикрепить

  прикреплять

  * * *

  1.
  сущ.
  1) грам. аффикс
  2) редк. добавление
  3) в кинологии обозначает специальную приставку, ставящуюся в паспорте до или после имени собаки, чтобы определить год рождения, породу, производителя и т.д.
  2.
  гл.
  1) прикреплять (to, on, upon)
  2) добавлять, прибавлять, присоединять (to, on, upon)
  3) поставить (подпись); приложить (печать)

  Новый англо-русский словарь > affix

• 10
  affix
  
  

  English-russian dctionary of diplomacy > affix

• 11
  affix
  
  

  Англо-русский технический словарь > affix

• 12
  affix
  
  

  [‘æfɪks]

  1) Общая лексика: аффикс, делать приписку, дефис, наклеивать, поставить , прибавление, придавать , придаток, прикладывать, приклеивать , прикрепить, прикреплять, присоединить, присоединять, прибавлять , приписывать , приложить

  Универсальный англо-русский словарь > affix

• 13
  affix
  
  

  наносить; ставить

  it is a duly of each welder to personally affix his number in crayon, adjacent to each weld he works on for future identification в обязанности каждого сварщика входит лично ставить цветным мелком свой [ присвоенный ему] номер у каждого сваренного им шва для последующей идентификации

  English-Russian dictionary of scientific and technical difficulties vocabulary > affix

• 14
  affix
  
  

  прикрепля́ть, присоединя́ть

  The Americanisms. English-Russian dictionary. > affix

• 15
  affix
  
  

  дополнение; добавление; II прикреплять; соединять; фиксировать

  Англо-русский словарь по машиностроению > affix

• 16
  affix
  
  

  3) прибавлять, присоединить

  English-Russian scientific dictionary > affix

• 17
  affix I
  
  

  Большой англо-русский и русско-английский словарь > affix I

• 18
  affix II
  
  

  Большой англо-русский и русско-английский словарь > affix II

• 19
  affix
  
  

  Англо-русский словарь технических терминов > affix

• 20
  affix
  
  

  закреплять, прикреплять, присоединять

  * * *

  Англо-русский словарь нефтегазовой промышленности > affix

Asked by: Gerard Huels

Score: 4.1/5
(17 votes)

In linguistics, an affix is a morpheme that is attached to a word stem to form a new word or word form. Affixes may be derivational, like English -ness and pre-, or inflectional, like English plural -s and past tense -ed. They are bound morphemes by definition; prefixes and suffixes may be separable affixes.

What is an affix and example?

As you now know, an affix is a word that can be added to a root word or base word to add a new meaning. … For example, in the word conforming, con- is the prefix and -ing is the suffix, while «form» is the root. For another example, let’s examine the root word cred.

What does the affix form mean?

Quick Summary. The root form, which means ‘shape,’ gives us a number of words that are used every day, including reform, information, deformed, and form. To ‘form,» for instance, is simply ‘to shape,’ whereas to reform is merely to ‘shape again.

How do you find the affix in word?

An affix is added to the root of a word to change its meaning. An affix added to the front of a word is known as a prefix. One added to the back is known as a suffix. Sometimes, prefixes are hyphenated.

What is affix in English grammar?

In English grammar and morphology, an affix is a word element that can be attached to a base or root to form a new word or new form of the word, usually occurring as either a prefix or suffix.

23 related questions found

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	affix — a linguistic element added to a word to produce an inflected or derived form word — a unit of language that native speakers can identify; «words are the blocks from which sentences are made»; «he hardly said ten words all morning» bound form, bound morpheme — a morpheme that occurs only as part of a larger construction; eg an -s at the end of plural nouns prefix — an affix that is added in front of the word postfix, suffix — an affix that is added at the end of the word infix — an affix that is inserted inside the word
Verb	1.	affix — attach to; «affix the seal here»   stick on stamp — affix a stamp to; «Are the letters properly stamped?» attach — cause to be attached seal — affix a seal to; «seal the letter» post — affix in a public place or for public notice; «post a warning» plaster — affix conspicuously; «She plastered warnings all over the wall»
	2.	affix — add to the very end; «He appended a glossary to his novel where he used an invented language» append, add on, supplement attach — cause to be attached annex — attach to
	3.	affix — attach or become attached to a stem word; «grammatical morphemes affix to the stem» attach — cause to be attached prefix — attach a prefix to; «prefixed words» suffix — attach a suffix to; «suffix words» infix — attach a morpheme into a stem word

Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

affix

verb attach, add, join, stick on, bind, put on, tag, glue, paste, tack, fasten, annex, append, subjoin Complete the form and affix four tokens.
remove, take off, detach, disconnect, unfasten, unglue

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

affix

verb

1. To join one thing to another:

2. To ascribe (a misdeed or an error, for example) to:

3. To add as a supplement or an appendix:

The American Heritage® Roget’s Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

We often like to make new words by adding all kinds of bits to the beginning and end of an existing word. Such bits added are known as Affixes.

For instance, take the word “mastered”. “Master” is the root word here, which can function as a noun or a verb, as per the context. When you add the letters ‘e’ and ‘d’ at the end of ‘master’, the verb form of the word changes to its past tense. The “ed” used here is an affix.

• Types of Affixes
• Prefix
• Suffix
• Infixes
• Combining Forms and Affixes
• Why Should You Care About Affixes?
• Is an affix added before the root word?
• Which are the two important types of affixes?
• What does Affixation mean?
• What is the function of an affix?

A set of letters added at the beginning of the end of a root word is known as an affix. The addition of an affix modifies the meaning of a word. An affix as the name suggests ‘fixes’ itself to a root word. The root of a word is that part that remains when the affix is removed. Some simple examples for affixes include:

• Laughing- The affix is the suffix -ing.
• Incapable- The affix is the prefix in.
• Ex-President- The affix is the prefix ex.
• Friendly- The affix is the suffix ly.
• Incomplete- The affix is the prefix in
• Beautiful- The affix is the prefix ful.
• Effortless- The affix is the prefix less.

Now that you know what an affix is let’s explore its types. There are three major kinds of Affix:

• Prefix
• Suffix
• Infix

Prefix

An affix that is attached at the beginning of a word is known as a prefix. A prefix is positioned before the root word. They create a new word that has a different meaning from the root word. For example: Take the word capable. By adding the prefix ‘in’ a new word ‘Incapable’ is created. Some other common prefixes used in English include

• dis- dislike, disown
• un- unlike, unlikely
• re- reunion, repeat
• in- inspire, interrogate
• anti- antibiotic, anti-national
• super- supervision, supermarket
• bi- bisexual, bipolar

Hyphenated Prefixes: At times you might have noticed a hyphen placed between the prefix and the root word. This is common in the below cases.

When the ending of the prefix and the beginning of the root word have the same letters. For example, the word: anti-immigration. Next, hyphens are used when a prefix joins a proper noun. For example, the word trans-Atlantic. The following four Prefixes always take hyphens:

• all- all-encompassing
• cross- cross-examination
• ex- ex-partner
• self- self- help

Suffix

Suffixes are positioned at the end of a root word. Just like prefixes, suffixes also create new words that have new meanings. The four most common suffixes are

• ed- respected, selected
• ing- loving, caring
• ly- lovely, slowly
• es- foxes, plosives
• able- disable, enable
• logy- biology, zoology
• ed- listed, gifted

In certain cases, the spelling of a root word is altered when a suffix is added. One such example would be the word “unimaginable”. Its root word is “imagine.” Generally when a word ends in a silent ‘e’, the suffix is added in the place of the silent ‘e’.

Hyphenated Suffixes: Hyphenated suffixes are used at the end of words. Just like hyphenated prefixes, they are not part of the word but rather are hyphenated after the word they intend to modify. Hyphenated suffixes are very rare.

• -free: The meat is fat-free.
• -based: His project is theory-based.
• -elect: She might become the President-elect.
• -style: They purchased a Mediterranean-style home.

Infixes

Infixes are words or word elements that occur within a base word, generally separated by hyphens. There are no “true” infixes in English. Infixes are all formed colloquially in speech and writing, for the sake of adding emphasis to a word.

Examples:

• fan-frickin’-tastic
• abso-bloody-lutely
• un-stinkin’-believable

Also, Read:

• Root Words
• Word Classes
• Word Families

Combining Forms and Affixes

A study of affixes remains incomplete without knowing what combining forms are. Even though combining forms are not affixes, their function is similar to that of an affix.

A combining form refers to a new word that is built by combining two independent words or two affixes.
Affixes are added to prevailing root words or roots to modify the meaning, combining forms on the other hand creates new words.

Examples:

• para+ trooper= paratrooper (combination of independent words)
• – micro+ -scope= microscope (combination of two affixes)

Why Should You Care About Affixes?

Learning affixes can help you master the English language easily. Given below are some of the benefits of using affixes:

• Using an affix will reduce the word count: A word’s meaning is altered when you add an affix. You can use this to lessen your word count by one or two words and to create simple words. For example: Not aware > unaware, Not sure > unsure
• Helps You to Break down long words and learn spelling: The word antidisestablishmentarianism is best known not for what it means but for its length. If you break it down into affixes, it’s pretty simple to learn this word. The affixes in the word: Anti-dis-establ-ish-ment-Arian-ism, Hence mastering affixes will surely help you with spelling.
• Helps to Decode Meaning: Studying affixes in a word can help you in understanding its meaning.

FAQs on Affixes

1. Is an affix added before the root word?

No. Affix is not always added before the root word. A set of letters added at the beginning of a word or at the end is known as an affix.

2. Which are the two important types of affixes?

A set of letters added at the beginning or the end of a root word is known as an affix. The two kinds of affixes include prefixes and suffixes. A prefix is added before the root word whereas a suffix is added after the root word.

3. What does Affixation mean? 

The process of adding affixes to the root word is known as affixation. The addition of an affix will bring about a meaning change.

4. What is the function of an affix?

A set of letters added at the beginning or end of a root word is known as an affix. Affixes play an important role in the creation of new words. Similarly, the addition of affixes can also change the meaning or form of the root word.

Conclusion

The addition of affixes at the beginning and end of words is useful to create new words and add new shades of meanings to the existing words. Hence make sure that you have a thorough understanding of affixes and their types. Study various English Vocabulary Words as well to improve your command over the language.